After Friday’s dominant win, the Houston Rockets (23-25) are in a virtual tie with the Utah Jazz (24-26) for the No. 10 spot in the Western Conference standings, which would represent the final berth in the West’s 2023-24 play-in tournament to make the playoffs.
That’s the good news. The bad news is that after bumping their home record to 18-9, the Rockets will now head out on a four-game road trip, and they are 5-16 away from Houston this season.
Making matters worse, it starts with Sunday’s visit to Minnesota, where the Timberwolves (34-15) are tied for the West’s top record.
Led by strong big men such as Rudy Gobert and Karl Anthony-Towns, the Timberwolves controlled the paint in a commanding win over the Rockets last month in Houston. Alperen Sengun hopes to flip the script in Sunday’s rematch from Target Center in Minneapolis.